Home grown live music nights

Home-grown Live Music Nights

Apart from a couple of weeks around Christmas, we have live music every Thursday evening. Doors open 7.30 pm and the music starts at 8.00, so come along and listen to a wide range of acoustic music styles from Folk to Country, from Blues to Roots to R&B.

Good music, good humour and plenty of banter in warm and cosy convivial surroundings. We are a friendly bunch and newcomers are always made to feel welcome.

The ability and quality of the floor singers/musicians can range from experienced professionals and accomplished enthusiasts to those just starting out.

All are given encouragement and a listening ear such is the nature, and indeed the value, of a ‘singers club’.

Although we meet in a pub, the club room is away from the main bar and first-time visitors often tell us how pleasantly surprised they are that the music is not blaring out or competing with people struggling to be heard.

It is a place to relax with a drink and listen to an eclectic mix of live music – and to get away from the damned X-Factor!

Visitors who sing or play are more than welcome to get up and do a spot. All styles and abilities are catered for. Whether a performer or listener, you are guaranteed a warm welcome.

Most Thursdays are “Singers Nights” with the performers doing between two and four songs each, depending on the attendance.

Floor spots are available practically every week – even on Showcase and Concert Nights.

Concert Nights are held every couple of months or so when we book some of the top-notch acts on the circuit. (click here for some recent reviews). These evenings normally kick off with floor spots by club regulars followed by a 30-45 minute set from the booked guest. More floor singers will start the second half of the evening before the main attraction finishes with another 30-40 minute set. Priority for the more limited floor spots on guest nights will be given to early arrivals and subscribed regulars, although we will always do our best to fit everybody in.

Showcase Performances. These occasional “Extended Spots” are usually by a visitor from another club and take the form of a six-song (30-minute) set during the middle of the evening, leaving plenty of opportunities for floor singers.

Entrance is just £1.50 on Showcase and Singers Nights and includes a draw ticket for the bottle raffle. Concert Nights are between £3 and £8 for non-members.

The Rules

The only house rules we have in place are there to ensure everyone can enjoy the music and show respect for our gracious hosts at The Feathers who kindly let us use their facilities:

Please turn off all phones during the evening

Please limit conversations to the gaps between songs

Please only enter or leave the room between songs

Please do not bring drinks bought elsewhere – The Feathers has a very good bar and in return for your custom, grants us the use of the room free of charge.

And the most important rule of all… Enjoy live music, wherever it may be!

There is, after all, nothing better than live music, hearing the real thing live with your own ears and in front of your very eyes. Live music doesn’t have to be – in fact, shouldn’t be – perfect. Live music is about the sound, the feeling, the expression and the emotion.

It is also about encouraging newcomers. There is nothing more satisfying than following someone’s hesitant, faltering first steps into the world of public performance – yes, even if the performance is flaky – and seeing them grow in confidence, stature, competence and technical ability until they blossom into performers who can truly entertain and captivate an audience.

We have seen this happen many many times in various folk and acoustic clubs. And thatis what Ruthin AllStyles Music Club is all about.

Where does the Money Go?

Ruthin AllStyles a self-financing non-profit club

Since it’s inception back in 1996 the club has been successfully run on an informal basis, following on from the example set by Llinos and Campbell, with the “reins” being handed over from time to time to someone (usually a couple) willing to do the graft.

The entrance fee (currently £1.50) includes a ticket for the bottle raffle, and is accrued in the club’s accredited bank account to cover such things as:

[c] To Subsidise Concert Nights – The door takings and ticket sales on such nights are effectively a donation to the visiting performers. Any shortfall in the fee they’d normally charge is made up out of club funds. (Visiting professional/semi-pro musicians can cost anything from £100 to £250, and those with the ‘pulling power’ to fill the room, between £300 and £400).

Members Concessions.Having contributed to club funds throughout the year,regular members will usually pay only the usual £1.50 even on concert nights. This doesn’t mean you have to attend every week to qualify. But someone who makes it to ordinary club nights, thereby contributing £1.50 at least every 2 or 3 weeks (say around 20 times a year), can expect a concession on the concert night ticket price.

We feel this is the fairest way of doing things – especially when you consider that even at the full ticket price of between £3 – £8 is exceptionally good value for a fantastic evening’s entertainment by these talented performers. It is certainly much less than you would pay at a dedicated venue with overheads and staff to pay.